Web Server Caching for Performance Improvement

1. A machine-controlled method, comprising: a web server identifying data to be cached, the data originating from a plurality of external data sources; the web server caching the data at the web server; an application server generating metadata corresponding to the cached data, the metadata including a last update time, a “frequency of updates” parameter, and a “frequency of usage” parameter; a client displaying a webpage including a plurality of panels, each panel providing a different type of information corresponding to the cached data, a first one of the plurality of panels including an email inbox and a second one of the plurality of panels including a search engine interface; at least one of the web server and the application server determining that external data corresponding to the cached data has changed; the web server receiving information corresponding to the changed external data; and responsive to the determining, the web server updating the cached data at the web server and the client updating at least one of the plurality of panels based on the metadata and the received information.

2. The machine-controlled method of claim 1 , wherein the determining is based at least in part on a control message received by the web server from the application server.

3. The machine-controlled method of claim 1 , further comprising the application server sending a custom tag to the web server, the custom tag corresponding to the cached data.

4. The machine-controlled method of claim 3 , wherein the determining comprises the web server sending a control message to the application server responsive to the custom tag.

5. The machine-controlled method of claim 4 , wherein the determining further comprises the application server revising the control message by inserting update information into the control message and returning the revised control message to the web server.

6. The machine-controlled method of claim 5 , wherein the inserted update information comprises the changed external data.

7. The machine-controlled method of claim 1 , wherein the receiving comprises the web server retrieving the external data directly from the external data source via the application server.

8. The machine-controlled method of claim 1 , wherein the updating comprises a partial refresh of a portion of the cached data.

9. The machine-controlled method of claim 1 , wherein the updating comprises a complete update of the cached data.

10. One or more tangible computer-readable media storing machine-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause a computer to perform the machine-controlled method of claim 1 .

11. The machine-controlled method of claim 1 , wherein each different type of information further includes at least one of a group consisting of the following: a listing of links to recently-accessed documents, a listing of communities, and a listing of current headlines.

12. A system, comprising: a web server configured to identify data to be cached, the data originating from a plurality of external data sources, wherein the web server is further configured to cache the data, determine whether external data corresponding to the cached data has changed, receive information corresponding to the changed external data, and update the cached data responsive to a determination that the external data has changed; an application server configured to generate metadata corresponding to the cached data, the metadata including a last update time, a “frequency of updates” parameter, and a “frequency of usage” parameter; and a client configured to display a webpage including a plurality of panels, each panel providing a different type of information corresponding to the cached data, a first one of the plurality of panels including an email inbox and a second one of the plurality of panels including a search engine interface, wherein the client is further configured to update at least one of the plurality of panels based on the metadata and the received information responsive to the determination that the external data has changed.

13. The system of claim 12 , wherein the determination is based at least in part on a control message received by the web server from the application server.

14. The system of claim 12 , wherein the application server is further configured to send a custom tag to the web server, the custom tag corresponding to the cached data.

15. The system of claim 14 , wherein the web server is further configured to send a control message to the application server responsive to the custom tag.

16. The system of claim 15 , wherein the application server is further configured to revise the control message by inserting update information into the control message and return the revised control message to the web server.

17. The system of claim 16 , wherein the inserted update information comprises the changed external data.

18. The system of claim 12 , wherein the web server is further configured to retrieve the external data directly from the external data source via the application server.

19. The system of claim 12 , wherein each different type of information further includes at least one of a group consisting of the following: a listing of links to recently-accessed documents, a listing of communities, and a listing of current headlines.